Various powered vehicles have been used to transport passengers and cargo. Internal combustion engines have been used to power motor vehicles. In addition, electric motors have been used to drive wheels of vehicles, for example, powered by batteries, a generator located on the vehicle, or an external source of electricity. Examples include trains, golf carts, electric highway vehicles, and hybrid electric vehicles. Moreover, belts have been used to transfer power to auxiliary systems on motor vehicles and cogged belts have been used to turn cam shafts. Cogged belts have also been used to drive the rear wheel of motorcycles, and belts have been driven by electric motors and used to drive the wheels of wheelchairs. In addition, a number of types of transmission systems have been used to transmit torque and power from an electric motor to a wheel of a vehicle. As examples, electric motors have been rotatably attached directly to a wheel, have been rotatably attached using an axle with universal joints, have been connected to two wheels through a differential, and have been connected in driving relation through a gear box that provides speed reduction, and have been rotatably connected with a drive belt.
Needs and potential for benefit exist, however, for new and improved ways to transmit the torque and power of electric motors to the wheels of the vehicles. For example, needs or potential for benefit exist for electric motor powertrains for vehicles that are light weight, quiet, durable, inexpensive, easy to maintain, easy to design, that do not require a sealed gearbox containing gear oil, that provide speed reduction, that provide for independent control of torque transmission to two wheels on opposite sides of the vehicle, or a combination thereof, as examples. Further, needs or potential for benefit exist for vehicles having such drivetrains and for methods of manufacturing such powertrains and vehicles. Even further, needs or potential for benefit exist for such powertrains in highway vehicles including hybrid electric vehicles, fully electric vehicles, and all-wheel drive vehicles.
Other needs or potential for benefit or improvement may also be described herein or known in the automotive industry. Room for improvement exists over the prior art in these and other areas that may be apparent to a person of ordinary skill in the art having studied this document.
These drawings illustrate, among other things, examples of embodiments of the invention. Other embodiments may differ.